


After the End, after the End was fixed, there was only one bed

by Bablefishmouse



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Spoilers, First Kiss, Getting Together, M/M, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Sharing a Bed, communication is healthy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-21
Updated: 2018-06-21
Packaged: 2019-05-26 15:51:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,541
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15004211
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bablefishmouse/pseuds/Bablefishmouse
Summary: After everyone is resurrected and reunited, beds are in a little shot supply in Wakanda. Steve and Tony end up sharing a room, and may, in fact, communicate.





	After the End, after the End was fixed, there was only one bed

There was no trouble that the Avengers plus Guardians plus strange alcoholic Asgardian were staying in safe houses away from the Wakandan Palace. It certainly made sense: they’d be in the way, and internal politics were certainly none of any of their business.

So when all was well and done, and all was well and done, because they’d done it, they’d won. Everyone was back, Thanos was dead. Everyone was fine! Anyway, Tony had no problem with the safe houses, the problem was that they were the same safe houses as they had between. He wished that they were a little bigger. Or rather, that this one was a little bigger.

Tony stared at the solitary bed.

Well, there was always the couch. It wasn’t terribly big, but he should fit well enough. After all, it’s not like he was here for more than one night. New York beckoned.

But if St- if he was sleeping on the couch, huh, if only, if Tony was sleeping on the couch, then he was at least taking the duvet off the bed and onto his couch.  

He grabbed the thing and threw it over the couch. There, that looked comfortable right?

Well, it was better than trying to sleep next to-

Steve opened the door, took one look at the situation, and opened his mouth: “What the hell!”

“You won’t fit on the couch and it’s only fair that the person who doesn’t get the bed should get the duvet.” Tony said.

Steve frowned.

He hated that frown, he really did. And okay they’d worked together just fine to defeat Thanos, and there might even have been a couple of hugs when they realised the other was alive, but that didn’t mean that they had actually, well, talked.

And now they were sharing a room.

Shit.

That didn’t really cover it, but Tony wasn’t in the mood to be particularly verbose on the subject, even in his internal monologue.

Steve sighed, then said: “I don’t know why they have duvets anyway, it’s hardly like people are going to get cold.”

“Over eager air conditioning?” Tony suggested, taking the opportunity to lie down on the couch, on top of the duvet. “Overly decorative mattress topper?”

Unseen, Steve smiled, then sat down on the bed. “Don’t see why they’d need it. This thing feels wonderful.”

“hmmm?”

“Their tech clearly extends to mattresses.”

“hmm,” It might have extended to sofas, Tony considered, but they were clearly only intended for sitting on not sleeping.

“What was that?” Steve’s voice was muffled.

Tony sat up to see Steve’s chest. Well, Steve’s shirt over his head revealing a lot of Steve’s glorious bare chest. It’s not like he’d never seen it before or anything but wow! It was.... He tried to hide the whimper by merging it into “WHAt are you doing?”

Steve pulled the rest of his shirt off. “Getting ready for bed?”

Tony stared.

“Tony?”

Right. No. He forced his gaze away and lay back down, removing the possibility of forgetting just how little he and Steve got on at that moment. Or at all really.

No that was doing them a disservice. They’d been friends for years. Barely, casually to start with, but it had settled out, ‘cept for the Ultron hiccup. Or Tony thought they had. Maybe they’d ever been more than co-workers. It’s not like he’d ever had a normal relationship with those.

Ow. His back gave a painful reminder that he was not 23 anymore. Maybe sleeping on his front would help.

“Are you alright?”

“Fine.” Tony lifted his head up from the arm of the couch to say.

“Okay…” There was the sound of a little more movement, and then only soft breathing.

Nope! Sleeping on his front was definitely not helping. It didn’t usually, but somehow he always tried. He turned over again. Tony supposed he could try his side but that would almost certainly end with him rolling off the couch. He winced as he stretched one of his bruised muscles.

“For heaven’s sake Tony, the bed’s big enough for both of us!”

Tony blinked.

“I can hear you overthinking over there.”

“Is the superhearing that good?”

“Yep.” Steve, the bastard, simply agreed.

Tony let out another gasp as something pulled slightly.

“Tony please.”

“Fine.” He stood up and grabbed the duvet off the couch. Fine he’d go and share a bed with Steve. That wasn’t going to end badly at all.

Well, it was the only way either of them were getting any sleep tonight the way this was going.

Steve sat upright, “What are you doing?”

Tony threw the covers down onto the middle of the bed, then begun to scrunch them together. “Building a barrier.”

Steve watched him for a moment, then laid back down. Tony finished his work then climbed onto the bed on the other side.

He sighed. Oh this was a nice bed.

“What?”

“Nothing, just thinking you were right about Wakandan technology and beds.”

“Hmm”

Tony felt his eyes drifting shut. He was so tired. So, so tired. The bed barely seemed to exist, it was like he was floating, free nothing there but him and the black emptiness of space. Nothing but him. Nothing but him in the universe. No Peter. No Pepper. No Rhodey. No Bruce, no Natasha, no Clint, no Thor, no, no-

“Tony!”

“Steve!” His eyes shot open the darkness of the room all-consuming even as the stream of steady murmurs told him beyond a doubt that he was not alone.

“I’m here.”

Trying not to overthink Tony slid one of his hands underneath the makeshift barrier. He shouldn’t, he really shouldn’t, but – but Steve took it seemingly without a moment’s thought.

“I’m here,” He repeated stroking Tony’s hand.

“Thank you.”

“Anytime.” Steve promised.

Tony closed his eyes again, trying to let the rhythmical soothing motion ground him.

“Tony,” Steve said softly,

“yeah,”

“Where- I’m sorry.”

“Me too.”

Tony let his thoughts wash over him.

“I’m sorry we were never friends.”

“huh?” Steve murmured, then sat up “Tony!”

The man blinked in the dark.

“Tony, we are friends!”

“Right, yeah, okay.”

“Tony,” Steve repeated. Then he threw the makeshift barrier off the bed with his spare hand and wriggled forward, “Tony,”

“Yes.”

“Low light please.” Steve ordered, finally able to see Tony’s face. He slid his other hand across to cup Tony’s cheek. Their eyes locked. “Do you know what went through my head when I saw you after? That maybe God existed after all, to spare you. Not even so that we could fix it. Just that you were alive, that was enough.”

Tony took a shuddering breath, blown away by the sheer honesty in Steve’s expression.

Steve continued. “You know Natasha was my first friend in this century, Sam the first non-colleague.”

They shared a moment of humour at how long that had lasted.

“But you,” Steve squeezed his hand, “You were the person that this was the future, the better future. And no, Tony, it wasn’t your tech. That’s amazing, but oh my god, you-“ he sighed. “You have this way of looking at things and seeing a dozen different ways it can play out. And then you have to help and that’s just-“

“Steve,” Tony filled the void left after Steve just broke off. He had to say something, he had to. The subtle light in the room, not allowing him to see any further than Steve’s face, his long eyelashes, his furrowed brow. It felt like they were the only two people in the world together. “WORDS!”

Steve blinked.

“They’re really complicated um-“

“That’s why you’re the genius,” Steve tone was oh so purposely light.

Tony hated it. “I thought we were friends. I didn’t-“ he took a deep breath. “After Siberia, no I wasn’t sure we were ever friends. But before that, yes, I thought- I knew we were friends. But not to, never to-“

“Tony,” The softness in Steve’s words almost overwhelmed him.

“Right, I grew up with tales of you, mostly your costume stuff, but not all of it. So I was already- you were already such a thing to me before we met. So when we became friends I thought I was always fonder of you than you were of me.”

Steve brushed his thumb across Tony’s face. “We’re terrible at communication.”

“We really are.”

Steve bit his lip. Tony’s eyes followed the motion. Steve’s followed his.

“Oh.” Steve said. “If I’m wrong about this, please don’t hate me.”

Tony didn’t get the chance to say anything as Steve leaned in and pressed his lips to Tony’s.

Fuck!

He didn’t have time to react before Steve retreated.

“Sorry, I didn’t want to not say anything. Not anymore.” Steve sat up and was about to climb off the dam bed.

Tony shot upright, and grabbed his shoulders with both hands.

Steve stayed absolutely still.

“Fuck yes!” Tony said, then reached across and returned the kiss, moving his hands to cup Steve’s face.

Steve let out a shaky breath. “Yes?”

“Yes.”

Steve relaxed and fell back down against the mattress. Tony curled into his side.

“We still need to talk.”

“I know, tomorrow?” Steve suggested reaching out and stroking Tony’s hair.

“Tomorrow.”  

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed it. Please, leave a kudos and/or let me know what you thought!


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